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SOME INSECT PARASITES OF THE BUD MOTH. 



E. Melville DuPorte, Macdonald College. 



During the past two seasons the bud moth has been one of the most 

 destructive orchard pests in certain sections of this province. The writer 

 has made observations on Hfe history of the insect in this district and 

 has paid special attention to the occurrence of parasites because the splen- 

 did work done in the United States and other countries on insect para- 

 sitism has shown that a more extensive knowledge of insect parasitism 

 and a fuller elaboration of the means of applying this knowledge to the 

 practical problems of entomology will result in rendering innocuous some 

 of our most injurious species, or at least in greatly reducing the extent 

 of their depredations. 



Last summer I succeeded in obtaining four hymenopterous parasites 

 from the bud moth. Through the courtesy of Dr. L. O. Howard, Chief 

 of the U. S. Bureau of Entomology, and Mr. J. C. Crawford of the U. S. 

 National Museum these were identified as Pimpla {Itoplectes) conquisitor 

 Say, (Microdus) Bassiis earinoides Cress., Opius (Biosteres) sp., and Pen- 

 tarthron minutum Riley {Tricho gramma pretiosa Riley). 



Of these Microdus earinoides is the only one which has previously 

 been described as a parasite of the bud moth. 



Pimpla conquisitor is a common parasite of wide distribution. It 

 is one of the most important enemies of the cotton worm {Aletia argil- 

 lacea) and is also parasitic on the bagworm, tent caterpillar and other 

 lepidoptera. 



The Opius is probably an undescribed species. 



Microdus, Pimpla and Opius were reared from the pupae. 



Pentharthron minutum was reared from the eggs of the bud moth. 

 This minute chalcid is our commonest egg parasite and preys on a large 

 number of hosts, but has not been before described as a parasite of the 

 bud moth. Eggs parasitised by this insect are easily recognised, as they 

 assume a deep, shiny black colour. On breaking open the egg a yellow 

 grub or a yellow pupa with red eyes may be seen within it. Sometimes 

 there are two parasites within a single egg although the length of the 

 egg does not exceed 1-30 inch. This parasite seemed to be widespread, 

 as I found it at Abbottsford, Como, La Trappe, Bale D'Urfe, Ste. Marie 

 and St. Annes. It is the most abundant of the parasites found, and will 



